Lesbian Mom Not Allowed To Adopt Her Own Son

A married lesbian woman, identified only by her initials A.C., was denied by a Brooklyn judge from adopting her own son. The infant boy was delivered late last year by A.C.’s wife, M.M., and both parents are listed on the birth certificate. The boy is already her son under the New York law, but the judge’s decision to refuse adoption poses risks if the family travels to states that don’t recognize gay marriage.

Legal experts said the decision could create problems if such a family got into a car accident in a state that doesn’t have gay marriage, for example. “If the child and the biological parent were injured and could not make health care decisions, then the only person who could make [decisions] would be the biological parent,” attorney Joseph Milizio said, who specializes in gay and lesbian law.

The couple wed in Connecticut in April 2011, so the infant boy is already considered their legal child, a fact Brooklyn Surrogate court judge Margarita Lopez Torres noted in her January 6 decision.